RAKANOA’S DESIGN
Here’s what Tim Windsor had to say, years later:
“Stan Parker realised that the boat as designed was not going to meet his requirements. He wanted a boat that would provide full headroom in the engine room… Work on the boat was stopped while discussions were held as to what could be done to satisfy Parker’s requirements… It was an embarrassing situation for me, having to alter another designer’s work, and I have no idea why Couldrey did not make the necessary alterations himself. I can only assume that he refused to do so.
“In the process of redesigning the boat I raised the freeboard 1ft, lifted the sheer to the bow 15ins, increased the beam, gave the foresections more flare and put more rake on the stem in profile. The general arrangement and superstructure were also redesigned.
“As the frames were already in position alterations were kept to a minimum, and the underbody sections as designed by Couldrey were not altered. So you could say that the underbody of Rakanoa is Couldrey’s design. What you see above the waterline is my design.”
But controversy remained. When registering her with Lloyd’s Yacht Register later, Stan Parker’s son Ross claimed Stan designed her (no doubt his input had been great), and Bill Couldrey never removed her from his list of designs or made any comment on Tim Windsor’s or Stan Parker’s part in the eventual as-built design. His comments were “Plans still held. Ship still owned by Stan Parker’s son, Ross Parker, 1972.”
A similar commercial job was the conversion of the old wooden steam coaster Tiroa into a modern diesel vessel.
Tim’s involvement with the five 18-foot M Class yachts Shipbuilders built for the US Forces during WWII led to the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron appointing him as an official measurer for the class in November 1945.
This took up a great deal of time for him after hours. On 19 November 1947, in a fruit- case factory in Eden Terrace, he inspected and passed the radically quick M Class yacht Myth, designed by 20- year old Laurie Davidson and built by Warwick Parkes.
In his landmark book Emmy, Robin Elliott details the ructions that ensued, including the withdrawal of her registration in March 1948, when Tim was displaced as measurer. It was all wildly political but didn’t cause Laurie Davidson to falter in his climb to the top as a yacht designer.
In October 1954 Tim Windsor decided to leave Shipbuilders and to set up building small craft of his own design. He formed a partnership with Bernie Lovegrove, who had served his apprenticeship with both Shipbuilders and Lidgards, trading as Penguin Boats in leased premises at Orakei on Railway land.
They built 10-foot and 12-foot plywood dinghies and later 14-foot and 16-foot outboard runabouts. Penguin Boats lasted until 1958 when Tim undertook a number of positions in the skilled woodworking field and property development until his death in 2009.
Our respect for Tim Windsor’s work will never die while his creations like Mahara, Rosemary II, Lady Eileen and Rakanoa are still on the water, beautiful to see, and giving immense pleasure to their current custodians. BNZ